‘Doctor Who’ fans react to Jodie Whittaker as the new Doctor

Jodie Whittaker has been revealed to the world as the new Doctor Who, the latest star of the popular, long-running British sci-fi series. The news Sunday set off a flood of reactions on social media due to the massive global popularity of the show and because of the history that had been made.

Whittaker will be the first woman to ever hold the show’s title role, and that fact was not lost on most everybody who responded to the news.

As such, many people were delighted to see this barrier broken. In recent years, some fans have criticized the show―and more specifically, outgoing showrunner Steven Moffat―for exclusively casting white men as the iconic Doctor. Now it’s officially no longer the case that only men get to be Doctor Who.

I am so ready to watch a woman protagonist save the world again and again by being clever and moral without getting rescued #jodiewhittaker

That negative reaction hasn’t seemed to dampen the enthusiasm of fans who’re stoked for Whittaker’s casting, however. To the contrary, the fact that some people are bothered by Whittaker landing the role seems to have only increased the levels of schadenfreude on the part of her supporters.

Doctor Who has randomly given me a wonderful opportunity remove friends who are dismissing a female Doctor as PC nonsense! 🙂

Whittaker will be the 13th actor to portray the time-traveling Doctor since the show first aired in 1963—and the fifth Doctor since the series returned to the airwaves in 2005. She’s had a successful career in British film and TV to date, including her role as Beth Latimer on the popular detective series Broadchurch, in which she co-starred alongside David Tennant, himself a former Doctor.

In keeping with custom, it’s expected that Whittaker’s first appearance as the Doctor will occur in the series’ 2017 Christmas special, and her first season in the role will begin in earnest sometime in 2018.

Chris Tognotti is a frequent contributor for the Daily Dot. He’s a news and current events writer based out of Berkeley, California, and a co-host of the podcast Now We Know. While he specializes in domestic politics and opinion writing, he’s also savvy on sports, video games, and film.

Jodie Whittaker has been revealed to the world as the new Doctor Who, the latest star of the popular, long-running British sci-fi series. The news Sunday set off a flood of reactions on social media due to the massive global popularity of the show and because of the history that had been made.